The University of Washington (UW) is an integral part of our Seattle community as the professional home of researchers and medical doctors. Since we support them with donations and federal funds, their actions reflect upon our community, particularly with regard to the use of animals.

Unfortunately, recent issues have highlighted incongruities between UW’s stated goals to use animals responsibly and decisions made by certain medical instructors and the UW Regents.

In October, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine organized a physician-led protest to bring awareness to UW’s paramedic training program, which uses 31 pigs each year to teach paramedics, paramedic students and Airlift flight nurses how to manage obstructed airways in trauma patients. The pigs are anesthetized, used for training and then euthanized.

This is an unnecessary use of animals, and the UW has a human-body simulator, known as the SimMan 3G, which is already used to teach medical students, graduate physicians and trauma physicians this procedure (and many other procedures) without the use of animals.

Dr. John Pippin, the Physicians Committee director of academic affairs, explains that of the 11 surveyed paramedic training programs in the Pacific Northwest, 10 use human simulators instead of live animals, with UW being the holdout.

Additionally, using pigs constitutes a sub-standard educational method. Students trained with human simulators benefit from learning this skill on a replicated human rather than pig anatomy, and a human simulator can be used repetitively to optimize training, so students are not limited to practicing a few times on pigs.

“It’s the decision of the instructor,” UW Medicine spokesperson Tina Mankowski stated, but Pippin explained that the decision is simply wrong and paramedic students are missing out on human-relevant training.

An entrenched approach to animal use appears to be affecting other UW decisions, as well. In 2013, the UW Board of Regents approved a new Animal Research and Care Facility (ARCF) to centralize animal labs on campus. According to David Anderson, executive director of Health Science Administration, UW intends to grow its primate-research capacity with the new ARCF.

Our community was left out of decisions about the ARCF and its impact on animals, according to Amanda Schemkes, director of the group Don’t Expand UW Primate Testing.

Schemkes has sued the UW, claiming failure to comply with Washington’s Open Public Meetings Act. The act states that public commissions and boards (such as the UW Regents) “exist to aid in the conduct of the people’s business” and that actions and deliberations be conducted openly.

Yet, documents obtained by Schemkes show that the UW Regents allegedly discussed and agreed to support the ARCF at a dinner meeting before the public meeting. Don’t Expand UW Primate Testing’s lawsuit seeks the Regents’ decision to build the ARCF to be voided and to allow time for the community and the Regents to educate themselves about the realities of primate testing.

Animals in research labs suffer considerably as a result of being used as a tool rather than treated as a soul. Many endure lethal exposure to toxic chemicals or have mechanical devices implanted in eyes and brains. Some primates live in small, solitary cages most of their lives.

In the last decade, UW has received multiple USDA citations and fines for failure to care for animals and for performing unauthorized surgeries.

‘Slowing medical progress’

There is a growing voice in the medical community that animal testing is inherently flawed and slows medical progress by placing a hyper-focus on animal use, instead of developing human-relevant alternatives such as cell cultures for toxicity testing and organ-on-a-chip technology for systems-level biology tests.

Also, animal experiments are shown to be unreliable, according to John J. Pippins’ 2013 “Animals Research in Medical Sciences,” since up to 96 percent of drugs successfully tested in animals fail in human clinical trials, while dangerous drugs sometimes gain FDA approval. Furthermore, some chronic diseases have no cures or effective treatments despite decades of animal experiments.

Yet, in 2014, UW received $423 million in taxpayer funds through the National Institutes of Health, much of which supports animal testing. A diversion away from research on animals could mean a loss of these funds, and “the animal research portfolio accounts for over 35 percent of research activity,” according to UW documents.

Although Anderson assures that all animal testing is reviewed for necessity, the UW’s plans to increase primate testing — rather than to set institutional goals to intentionally reduce animal testing overall — is not an ethical use of taxpayer funds. So, while there may be little monetary motivation to reduce animal testing, there is certainly a moral and scientific prerogative, since increasing primate testing inherently diverts funds from human-relevant research methods and subverts the rights of animals to be free from cruelty and mutilation.

The goal of using and seeking alternatives to animal use is not to block progress but to advance scientific discovery and training that will directly apply to human physiology. Furthermore, human progress is not just evaluated by our advancements in medical science but is also measured by our intentional evolution of the ethical treatment of animals.

CHRISTIE LAGALLY is a writer and the editor of Living Humane (livinghumane.com), a news site about humane-conscious lifestyles.

In comparison to much of the world, Seattle’s safety net for companion animals is world-class. Rescue and adoption groups work tirelessly to find homes for thousands of pets every year and animal-rights groups fight for the less-protected farm animals and captive wildlife. But worldwide, the picture is not always as ideal, and several organizations in Seattle are finding ways to help animals internationally.

Animal shelters

Eileen Weintraub, the founding director of Help Animals India, works on a volunteer basis. This Seattle-based, nonprofit animal-rescue, rehabilitation and educational organization provides critical services for India’s animals by funding and advising Indian animal welfare groups.

Help Animals India helps develop and fund a network of animal organizations, like the Visakha Society for the Protection and Care of Animals (VSPCA) and JBF (Just Be Friendly), to provide services, from saving orphaned baby monkeys to serving vegan meals to the poorest people to disaster relief from floods and cyclones. Veterinary experts working with Help Animals India have taught shelters to implement puppy quarantines for the first time and have trained staff to spay/neuter. Help Animals India also coordinates volunteers and veterinarians-in-training to work at Indian animal shelters.

The concept of animal shelters is not new in India because of the culture of Ahimsa (against killing) in the predominantly Hindu culture. Unfortunately, this often translates as benign neglect of animals, and the means to protect dogs, cats, elephants, cows, monkeys and more is extremely limited. By donating to Indian animal-rescue groups, American funds may go 10 times further because of the strength of our currency in India, Weintraub said.

People who travel to India for yoga training or tourism often want to rescue the suffering street animals they see, but they don’t know where to start.

Seattle’s helping hands can touch many places around the world, and PAWS is caring for a few Iranian dogs right here at home. Kay Joubert, PAWS’ director of Companion Animal Services, explained that while they always aim to help local dogs first, they also work with the Vafa Animal Shelter in Iran to bring dogs to the Seattle area.

A volunteer for the Vafa Animal Shelter arranges for Iranian dogs to accompany a volunteer human traveler between Tehran and Seattle. Upon arrival, PAWS places the animal in a temporary quarantine, as required by the USDA, and then the animal is adopted by a family in the Seattle area.

PAWS has taken seven dogs through Vafa, who places animals in forever homes throughout North America. You can support Vafa through its website at www.vafashelter.com

Chelsea, an Anatolian shepherd-cross, made it to Seattle, thanks to Vafa and PAWS, and she is now awaiting adoption. Joubert explained that dogs as companions is much less common in Iran. As a result, rescue dogs need to learn about walking on a leash and living in a house, although they tend to be well socialized with other dogs because they lived in groups in Iran.

PAWS is expecting two more Iranian arrivals in October.

Saving marine animals

While rescue is an important part of animal welfare, the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS, www.seashephard.org) has traditionally worked on prevention of harm to marine life. SSCS started in the Pacific Northwest in 1977 to take on some of the world’s most egregious abuses of marine life. Among other issues, SSCS addresses crimes such as whaling, baby seal hunts and dolphin hunting by sailing to places such as Japan, the South Seas and the Canadian North to take direct action against pirates and government fleets who are killing of wildlife.

SSCS is known worldwide for successes such as recently stopping the needless slaughter of pilot whales in the Faroe Islands, showing once again why “sea shepherd” is such an appropriate name.

Since its inception, SSCS has grown into a worldwide network of marine animal protection groups and has recently organized On-Shore Volunteer (OSV) efforts for individuals who apply to become part of the Sea Shepherd crew. Suzanne West is the Seattle chapter coordinator for SSCS, and she currently manages about 20 OSVs in the Seattle area. These volunteers raise awareness of SSCS’s work and fundraise to support direct action for animals worldwide.

“We are looking for people who have a passion for the ocean,” said West, who explains that the best way to get involved is to visit the group’s website and read about the commitment required to be an OSV.

A connection

With the unrest in the world today, it is natural to be concerned about the people and animals in harm’s way. In the United States, our freedom, safety and stable government gives us the opportunity and the power to make a difference to help people and animals worldwide. It also gives us the chance to connect with people internationally who devote their time and their love to care for the world’s most vulnerable yet precious animals.

CHRISTIE LAGALLY is a writer and the editor of Living Humane, a news site providing articles, op-eds and podcasts on humane-conscious lifestyles at livinghumane.com.

The day after Watoto the elephant died at the Woodland Park Zoo in August, advocates gathered for a vigil outside the zoo to demonstrate their support to send the two remaining elephants to a sanctuary. Although the zoo has maintained that the elephants were healthy, Watoto’s collapse seemed to confirm advocates’ arguments that zoo life is inherently unhealthy for elephants.

I attended Watoto’s vigil and the demonstration outside the zoo. As I stood alongside 60 Seattle residents peacefully voicing their conscience, a man in a passing vehicle shouted, “Get a job!” as if to denigrate us for expressing concern.

That driver’s anger was directed at a protester who replied, “I’m a retired zoo-industry employee of 35 years.” She was standing alongside teachers, lawyers, parents, engineers, artists, business and nonprofit professionals and reporters who were all gainfully employed. People from all parts of society can and will stand up for animals.

This September, demonstrators gathered outside the Japanese embassy as part of a worldwide, annual protest against the dolphin slaughter and capture in Taji, Japan.

“Sixteen thousand people took part in 117 protests last year,” accounted Seattle resident Franziska Edwards, speaking of the simultaneous protests held around the world. The events are held at marine parks to discourage attendance and at Japanese consulates to hold the Japanese government accountable, Edwards explained.

Queen Anne resident Claire Humphrey also attended, though she had never protested for animals before. After Humphrey saw the documentary “The Cove” and learned more about the threats to dolphins and ocean mammals, she has decided to get more involved.

“Attending the demonstration was a step in the right direction,” Humphrey said.

Joining the charge

Fall is a perfect time to get involved and let your voice be heard for animals. Protests, demonstrations and marches are taking place throughout the region.

Every year, a circus comes to town to display elephants and other captive wild animals by forcing them to perform tricks for amusement. Local residents Jim Becker and Doug Armstrong, volunteers with the Northwest Animal Rights Network (NARN), are helping people understand the consequences of attending the circus.

“A day at the circus for your family constitutes a lifetime of misery for the animals,” Armstrong said. New Metro Transit bus ads will remind people of this message and to not attend the circus.

Metro bus ads (Photo courtesy of NARN)

“Like most people, I grew up going to the circus,” Armstrong said. “I don’t think anyone goes with the intention to cause harm to animals. I think people don’t realize what happens behind the scenes. Elephants go through a tremendous amount of suffering — everything from being separated from their mothers to being beaten and whipped and chained up for most of their lives, just so people can spend a couple hours eating popcorn and laughing at some silly elephant tricks.”

Becker and Armstrong are coordinating demonstrations at each of the performances of Ringling Brothers Circus in Kent and Everett this September. You can help educate the public and let your voice be heard against animal cruelty by attending a demonstration. Visit www.narn.org/circus/ for dates and times, and check out the Pacific Northwest Against Circus Cruelty Facebook page.

While elephants suffer in circuses and zoos, they are also at risk in the wild. Oct. 4 is the Global March for Elephants and Rhinos, and concerned citizens will gather in Seattle’s International Children’s Park (700 S. Lane St.).

Co-organizer Nicki Aloisio explained that an elephant is poached every 15 seconds for the ivory in her tusk, and every nine hours a rhinoceros is killed for her horn. Animal advocates expect that by 2025 wild elephants and rhinoceros could be wiped out.

Event co-organizer Alyne Fortgang, co-founder of Friends of Woodland Park Zoo Elephants, said that the poaching crisis is at a tipping point: “Bringing awareness to this tragedy is critical. Friends of Woodland Park Zoo Elephants is committed to the welfare of elephants; not just those suffering and dying young in zoos but also those dying young in the wild.”

The brave individuals who attend demonstrations, rallies, marches and protests are just as busy as you and me. They have full-time jobs and many are raising children, but they know they must show up for an hour or so and speak out if they expect an end to animal injustices.

While a small number of protest on-lookers deal with these uncomfortable messages by showing anger, demonstrators often find that their efforts are rewarded by hearing passers-by say, “I just didn’t know, but now I know and I can make better choices for animals.”

In the United States, we depend on demonstrations to move our society away from the status quo. Our history of progress from civil rights and LBGT equality to environmental conservation and animal rights depends on demonstrations to bring hidden issues into the light of day. While this transition is rarely comfortable, it is absolutely necessary and is often the primary catalyst for change to help humans, animals and the environment.

CHRISTIE LAGALLY is a writer and the editor of Living Humane, a news site providing articles, op-eds and podcasts on humane-conscious lifestyles at livinghumane.com. To comment on this story, write to CityLivingEditor@nwlink.com.

Our relationship with Canada geese in the Puget Sound region has a convoluted history. The resident population of geese was originally transplanted here as goslings by the government in the late 1960s as hunting stock. With the mild climate, the fledglings formed a non-migratory population that now lives in the Puget Sound region year-round.

Unfortunately, geese living and defecating in waterfront parks is an annoyance for some. So around 1998, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services (USDA-WS) began conducting region-wide geese roundups by suffocating the birds with carbon dioxide or shooting them on Lake Washington.

Videos and eyewitness sightings of the roundups motivated local residents to demand an end to geese killing, and in 2004, the Seattle Parks and Recreation announced it would no longer use lethal control. However, Wildlife Services did not stop killing geese on behalf of King and Pierce county municipalities, according to reports obtained under a Freedom of Information Act request.

Each year, local cities sign onto an Interlocal Agency Agreement to collectively pay for USDA-WS services. This year’s agreement included Bellevue, Kent, Kirkland, Mountlake Terrace, Renton, Tukwila, Woodinville, the Port of Seattle, Seattle Parks, Tacoma MetroParks and the University of Washington (UW). Most participants pay $2,230 per year to have USDA-WS conduct surveys, addle eggs (to prevent development) and kill geese. USDA-WS Washington state director Roger Woodruff explains that the fees collected for these services, around $25,000 per year, covers all costs for these services.

The UW, Seattle and Bellevue, among others, report that they do not request lethal control, but all the agreement signatories pay for lethal control regardless of whether it is done within their jurisdiction. In 2013, 1,159 geese were killed in King County.

Non-lethal control

Geese in Seattle parks (Photo by D. Weinstein)

According to Woodruff, the geese population in our region soared in the late 1990s, when the agency ramped up lethal control. He says that egg addling is only minimally successful because much of Seattle’s shoreline is privately owned where USDA-WS cannot reach the eggs, and that culling prevents bird strikes at local airports.

However, according to the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) Bird Strikes database, in 1998 and 1999 (at the height of the geese population), there were two strikes involving Canada geese each year at the local airports. By 2004 and 2005, after years of killing geese, the average number of Canada goose strikes was still two per year. Even today, while many cities shun lethal control, only one Canada goose bird strike occurred in 2013. These strikes caused only minor or no damage to the aircraft and no human injury.

Animal advocates maintain that lethal control is cruel and unnecessary and should not be funded by taxpayers. When gassed, geese are corralled into metal boxes, where they struggle and gasp for oxygen. Eyewitnesses report the geese break their necks and wings in a desperate struggle for their lives.

Advocates encourage the use of a wide range of non-lethal alternatives, including expanded egg addling, modifications to park landscaping and harassment of geese with trained dogs and other deterrents. Certain cities do use some of these methods.

Feces-cleanup equipment, such as Naturesweep, can be purchased for park cleanup. For population control, OvoControl (a birth control-laced bird feed) and male goose vasectomies could be used.

Unfortunately, Interlocal Agreement signatories have shown little innovative spirit to implement new solutions. Bellevue, Seattle and UW report never having tried OvoControl, citing concerns about delivering the right dose or feeding non-target species, such as rats.

However, scientists at the USDA National Wildlife Research Center collaborated to develop and test OvoControl. Studies on Oregon geese populations have shown the product is successful at population control and is cost-effective.

The drug is administered during breeding season and would mitigate the problem of not being able to addle eggs on private property. With some ingenuity, a geese-specific feeder could be used to ensure the OvoControl does not reach non-target species.

Similarly, a Bronx Zoo study showed that vasectomies in resident goose populations reduce egg viability from 90 to 12 percent. Perhaps this kind of permanent solution for resident geese could be sustainable for decades.

Petitions circulating

Goose in Seattle park (photo by D. Weinstein)

For 15 years, geese management in King County has been a revolving door of human-goose conflicts. When agencies pay only $2,230 per year, it is not surprising that USDA-WS services are not sustainable and geese conflicts continue to occur. UW reports having to continually clean up geese feces at significant cost, but it continues to rely on USDA-WS.

A local group, Peace for Geese, is asking cities to stop killing geese and focus only on humane alternatives. As a matter of humane justice, taxpayer funds should be used for non-lethal, region-wide, sustainable, innovative solutions to geese population management. A petition is available asking cities to make this shift, and Peace for Geese is asking you to sign.